Metro News & Reviews

How the heat can impact Metro Rail service

The National Weather Service’s heat map for Southern California today.

Due to recent spikes in temperature, there may be some speed restrictions on sections of Metro Rail these upcoming weeks. Speed restrictions are precautionary measures during extreme weather conditions to ensure we do not cause damage to the tracks or overhead power lines.

This means there may be:

Possible delays on Gold Line, Blue Line, Expo Line and Green Line where power zones are strained or under extreme heat.

Trains may arrive several minutes behind schedule and also take longer during the ride. Expect crowded train cars.

Train doors will be on passenger release mode at terminal stations to keep train interiors as cool as possible. Use the door-adjacent button to open doors.

[…] Let me state the obvious. The heat wave is not good for our health. Heat exacerbates air pollution. It also increases the threat and severity of wildfires; which also affects our health. And this heat wave has shut down air traffic and slowed Metro rail lines. […]

Speed restrictions in extreme heat will now be managed on a line-by-line basis. Each Metro line is fitted with a number of electronic monitoring sensors to measure track temperature in real-time. By using actual track temperature, rather than the forecast ambient temperature, speed restrictions can be applied to affected parts of the network only.

When the track temperature of a line reaches 55 degrees or higher, the maximum speed limit is restricted to 80km/h. The tracks can expand in extreme temperatures and trains must travel at slower speeds to ensure customer safety.